Annuit
Coeptis - Novus Ordo Seclorum - E Pluribus Unum
No amount of dissembling
by Freemasons can hide the fact that the Great Seal of America, as printed
on the dollar bill, is a Masonic emblem: the eye in the pyramid, the
eagle and the inscriptions are replete with secret Masonic
symbolism. In this context it is self-evident that the three mottos
on the Seal will repay a close cabalistic analysis. What occult secrets
of Freemasonry do they conceal?
| |
 |
|
Annuit
Coeptis
The phrase 'Annuit
Coeptis' is derived from Virgil and is usually translated as
'He favours our undertakings'. 'He' is presumed to be the monotheistic
deity of Christianity. This interpretation is encouraged by the earlier
motto, 'Deo Favente Perennis', meaning, 'God Favours us through the
Ages'. However some believe there is also a reference to 'Nuit' or 'Nut'
the sky goddess of ancient Egypt. This is supported by the way 'Annuit
Coeptis' arches over the top of the pyramid (a phallic symbol) - a direct
analogy to the Egyptian symbolism of Seb (or Geb) and Nut. Nut is usually
shown as a tall woman whose body is bent in a great semi-circle to represent
the sky; her consort Seb is lying flat like the earth with erect phallus.
The raising up of Nut from the embrace of Seb represented the first
act of creation. Nut gave birth to the Sun each day and then swallowed
it at night.
The value of 'Annuit' is 390, which equates
her appropriately enough with the words, 'Mother of God'. Her name seems
to be a compound of Anna and Nuit, both of whom were goddesses who played
this maternal role. 390 also gives us the value of the Hebrew word 'ShMIM'
- 'heaven', and so supports the identification with Nut/Nuit.
However, the numerate
Mason might point out that 390 also comprises the product of 15 and
26, which are the two Hebrew names of God - 'IH'
(Jah) and 'IHVH' (Jaweh). These are numerically
linked in the Cabala, because 26 divided by 15 yields the square
root of three (1.732). This is a very important fraction for the sacred
architect because it defines the proportions of the vesica piscis (among
other things).
At 317, 'Coeptis'
shares the value of the goddess 'Aphrodite'.
'Annuit
Coeptis' has
a value of 707. This is the value of another incarnation of the mother
of God - Παρθενος Μαριαμ
- The Virgin Mary (1).
However this may not be as important as the fact that it also denotes
Ο Θεος Ερμης
- The god Hermes. Hermes is the patron of the esoteric science of Hermeticism
underpinning Masonic philosophy. The great significance for the builders
of 707 is that its digits denote a half of the square root of two (1.414).
This fraction (1/rt2) is called 'the sacred cut' and has been used from
Roman times, at least, in classical architecture. It also provides a
means of constructing a regular octogon from a square by means of a
compass and straight-edge (2).
Heliopolis
707 must also be significant as the value of 'AVN',
a Hebrew word which means 'On' or 'Heliopolis', the Egyptian city of
the sun (3).
In this it is interesting to note that 390 - Annuit - is the value of
Πολις ('Polis'
means city in Greek); and 317 - Coeptis - is the value (+ 1) of Ηλιος
-
the Greek name of the sun. Therefore 'Annuit Coeptis' gives us 'Heliopolis'
by two totally different numerical routes. It seems that the Great Seal
designers were especially interested in invoking the Egyptian "City
of the Sun" (4).
Why would they have
been interested in this city? They may have been drawn to Campanella's
Utopian vision of the future, Citta del Sole. Thomasso Campanella
was a Hermetic magus who upset papal sensibilities and was tortured
in the dungeons beneath the Vatican on several occasions. Citta
del Sole, written in 1602, prefigured Francis Bacon's New Atlantis
in emphasising the use of learning and science for the public good.
The historian Frances Yates interpreted Campanella's book as aiming
for a return to the Egyptian religion as predicted in the Asclepius
of the Hermetica. She cited a particular passage from Asclepius that
may have relevance to the seed germ of ideas behind the founding of
America:
The
gods who exercise their dominion over the earth will be
restored one day and installed in a City at the extreme limit of
Egypt, a City which will be founded towards the setting sun, and
into which hasten, by land and sea, the whole race of mortal men.
The Great Seal designers
may well have believed themselves to be following an ancient blueprint
involving a restoration of the harmonic philosophy that ensured the
stability and contentment of ancient Egypt.
Top
Novus
Ordo Seclorum
The other motto
on the reverse, 'Novus Ordo Seclorum',
seems to have a solar connotation. Valued at 1742,
it falls between Χρυσομαλλος
- Chrysomallos - at
1741 and Γνωμων -
Gnomon - at 1743. The first is the
name of the ram that bore the golden fleece - this was a solar symbol
and pointed to Aries, the first sign of the zodiac and the start of
the sun's annual journey. The latter is the upright member of a sundial
(or a builder's square). The pyramid and obelisk are both types of sundial
and both may represent the upright member of the god Seb.
The Number
of Fusion
1746 is an extremely important symbol of harmony for esoteric initiates,
as it represents the fusion of the solar number 666 and the lunar number
1080 (5).
On the Great Seal we find both components of this number united, because
'E Pluribus' has a value of 666 and 'Novus'
1080.
A Roman Date
The date 1776 is written in Roman numerals as MDCCLXXVI.
This seems to be a deliberate artifice because the gematria value of the 9 letters is 1369.
This is a very significant number for it represents 37 squared - and 37 is
the keystone of sacred geometry in the Bible (and elsewhere). The fact
that we have a square number at the base of the pyramid seems very fitting
- a solid foundation. The number 37 may also signify the Hebrew words
'AVL' and 'GDL'.
'AVL' means strength, or a powerful person.
'GDL' means power or majesty. Both of these
words aptly describe the potent god Seb.
1776 - Date
As a number 1776 would have been chosen for its numerological properties.
It, too, is factored by 37, being the product
of 37 and 48. It may be intended to represent 'Jesus of Nazerus' - who
has this value in English gematria (and as 888 x 2 also signifies the
doubling of his first name in Greek) and Jesus
is an important figure to the Freemasons. In Greek we find that the
phrase Ιησους εστι λογος
- Jesus is the Logos - also has this value. We notice that in Ephesians
2,20 Jesus is described as the chief corner stone in the foundation
of the temple of God. (6)
The Roman numerals
of the date MDCCLXXVI also generate the solar number 666. This comes
about through a pattern of three pairs: MDCCLXXVI
- the first red pair giving 600, the second 60 and the last 6. The intentionality
of this is further indicated by the fact that the remaining numbers
- MCX - give us, in a regular pattern, 1110. This is a particularly
important number in gematria and signifies harmony and completion. We
can also see that 666 and 1110 lie in a 3:5 ratio and therefore can
signify two sides of a 3-4-5 right-angled triangle. What is the length
of the missing side? It is 888 - the number of the Gnostic Ιησοθς
(Jesus) - the stone which
the builders disallowed (i Peter 2, 7).
Christian enthusiasts,
ignorant of cabalistic numerology, invariably interpret the number 666
to signify the devil. This is a mistaken assumption in many respects
and shows a disregard of St John's injunction that the 'number of the
beast' was counted only 'for him that hath understanding'. The cabalist
with understanding knows that 666 refers as much to the 'Beast' as it
does to Jesus Christ. The reason for this is that the words John used
were, Και ο αριθμος αυτου Χξς΄
-
'And the number of his name is 666'. These critical words have a value
of 2368: this number is unambiguous to the cabalist as the value of
Ιησοθς Χριστος -
Jesus Christ. Was St John predicting that the great Beast might usurp
the name of Jesus Christ?
It is also true that
666, as an emblem of the creative solar power in the cosmos, only becomes
destructive when it is not balanced by its feminine counterpart - in
this case it leads to authoritarianism and tyranny.
As a curious aside, we can also note that the American national anthem, the 'Star-Spangled Banner' has a value of 666. This reinforces the view that the architects of the nation held this number in the highest regard.
The Lightbringer
The combined value of 'Annuit Coeptis'
and 'Novus Ordo Seclorum' is 707 + 1742
= 2449. This is the precise value of the phrase Ιησοθς Χριστος Νικα -
Jesus Christ Conquers. In addition, it is almost certainly intended
to signify Ο Φωσφορος
(2448) - The Lightbringer
/ The Morning Star. Pictorially, this is represented by the blazing
triangle holding the eye in the pyramid. In scriptural terms it is highly
unlikely that 'Lucifer' can be entirely evil for the Bible ends with
these words of Jesus (Rev. 21,16):
I
am the root and offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
Here too, we come
across an original piece of Biblical gematria, because the Greek words
for former part of the phrase, Η ριζα και το γενος του Δαβιδ
are exactly equated (at a value of
1646) with an alternative name for the bright and morning star Φαεσφορος.
(7)
Top
E
Pluribus Unum
When the expression
is broken into its two components of 666 and 470, some very interesting
symbolism emerges. For a start, the two numbers lie in the ratio of
the square root of two - 666 divided by 470 is 1.417. More importantly,
they signify the interplay of light and darkness.
666 is the number
of the sun and points, for example, to to the Hebrew expressions ShMSh
IHVH - Sun of God, or SVRTh - The
spirit of the sun. 470 has the opposite symbolism because it denotes
KMRIR - an eclipse. However, it also signifies
light coming out of darkness because it is the value of the creative
words of God, IHI AVR VIHI AVR - 'Let there
be light, and there was light' (Gen 1,3). Therefore the complete phrase
adds dramatic significance to the image it accompanies, because, according
to the official guide, it shows 'a glory breaking through a cloud
over the head of the eagle'. This means a burst of sunlight piercing
the dark cloud. In Masonic terms we have the familiar motto 'Lux ex
Tenebris'.
The fact that the
eagle holds an olive branch in one claw and the arrows of war in the
other further reinforces the idea of opposites reconciled. Out of the
opposites of light and darkness, spirit and matter, male and female,
comes life. Therefore it is appropriate that 470 and 666 generate 815,
the number of Ζωη - Life,
when set at right-angles to produce a hypotenuse with this length. The
perimeter of the ensuing triangle is 470 + 666 + 815 = 1951. This number
unites the Cabalistic man with the Cabalistic bride: ADM
QDMVN (Adam Kadmon) and MLKVTh (Malkuth)
- 1455 + 496 = 1951.
The
Grand Total
The addition of
all three mottos on the Seal gives us 3585. This measures a pentacle
of side 717, enclosed in a 2368 circumference circle. 717 gives, 'BN
IH' - 'Son of God'. 2368 gives Ιησοθς Χριστος
- Jesus
Christ. The Great Seal thus pays homage to the Gnostic and numerological
Jesus Christ, secretly worshipped in Freemasonry.
All
This And Shakespeare Too?
The Masonic symbolism
of the Great Seal finds an interesting parallel in the esoteric symbolism
underpinning the verse structure of Shakespeare's Sonnets. There are
grounds for identifying a direct connection
and thinking that Shakespeare may have been involved in the founding
of the United States of America.
Top
Home
Return to "The
Jewels of Freemasonry"
Notes
1) 'Annuit
Coeptis' also has the same value Hebrew word 'AMVNIM',
meaning 'architects' or 'builders'.
2)
The term 'the sacred cut' seems to have been coined by the Freemason Tons
Brunes when he described this feature in his classic 1967 work The Secrets
of Ancient Geometry and its Use.
3)
For more on AVN go to The
Lost Master's Word.
4)
The reference to Heliopolis has another connection with America. Heliopolis
was the city of obelisks, forests of them by some reports. The national
monument of America is the Washington Monument, a giant 555 foot high
obelisk and unambiguously a Masonic symbol. The height of this colossal
upright is connected with 555 being the value of ,'The Head of the Corner',
and the fact that a 555 sided equilateral triangle has a height of 481,
which is equal to that of the Great Pyramid (in feet). However, the primary
consideration seems to relate to 555 forming the upright of a 3-4-5 triangle,
with a base of 740 and a hypotenuse of 925. There is a great deal of symbolism
incorporated in these numbers: 740 is the value of the Temple pillar 'IKIN'
- 'Jachin' and that of the sun god, 'AL ChM'.
If we double the triangle by reflecting it about the upright, we get a
1480 by 925 by 925 isosceles triangle. This has a perimeter of 3330, and
so gives us, 'Idou tithemi en Sion lithon akrogoniaion' - 'Behold I lay
in Sion a chief corner stone,' (I Peter 2, 6). It is also true that a
5-12-13 right-angled triangle with a height of 555 has a perimeter of
3330.
555 is also very close to the numerical signature of Jesus Christ by means
of multiplication. In Greek we see that Ιησοθς
has a value
of 888, Χριστος
a value of
1480 and Ιησοθς Χριστος
2368.
Thus it is interesting to see that 888 x 1480 = 2368 x 555.
5)
See John Michell, The Dimensions of Paradise, p.193-195.
6
1776 is also
indicative of the holy Trinity: one of the many ways in which it does
this is throught the three words Πατηρ,
Υιος, Πνευμα
- Father, Son and Spirit.
7)
The two numbers 707 and 1742 also hold numerological significance when
combined by another means. If these numbers measure the sides of a 'gnomon'
(a builder's square), the circle that may be drawn around the figure has
a circumference of exactly 5906. This number points clearly to the mysteries
of Christ on his cross, as it is the value of,
Ουτος εστιν Ιησους ο βασιλυς των Ιουδαιων - 'This is Jesus, the King
of the Jews' (Mat 27,37).
©
Peter Bull 2004-2022
All rights reserved. No portion of this page may be reprinted or otherwise
duplicated without express written permission from the author. |
